“You’re left a ­little bereft — for your character and for your experience.

"It also immediately makes you quantify the hugeness of what that experience has been over the last seven years, which has been massive.”

Game Of Thrones, which airs on Sky Atlantic in Ireland, saw how Littlefinger’s plan to turn sisters Arya and Sansa Stark against each failed.

(Image: HBO)

In the most shocking moment of the episode, Baelish's plans finally come undone as he is confronted by Sansa at Winterfell.

After spending the season trying to drive a wedge between Sansa and her sister Arya, it looked like he was finally going to get his way. We were led to believe that the older Stark sister was going to kill off her sibling after Littlefinger convinced her that Arya was out to murder her.

But after summoning everyone to the great hall, Sansa turned the tables on Baelish, and charged him with the murders of Lysa Arryn and Jon Arryn, and for his part in starting the war between houses Stark and Lannister.

"Even if I’m only in a few episodes — like last season I probably had less than any season — once your character is established as part of the world people feel like you’re there all the time.

"So it’s not really an issue for me how many scenes I’m in as long as the scenes are good, and they’re well put together, and your contribution is good. Then people feel like you’re there all the time.

"I’m glad I had a good story to finish with."

Aidan felt emotional at his character's goodbye.

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He said: “When you know what’s coming you relax a little in the way you interact with the others.

"There’s something else that seeps into your performance — a kind of serenity.

“But yeah, I did find it quite emotional.

"And I don’t necessarily mean that I was sad, but it’s an emotional moment for the character so I felt what he was feeling.”

The former Love/Hate star took away a memento from his character, a mockingbird pin which Littlefinger wore.

He added: "For the real last day at work Dan and David weren’t there but (co-executive producer) Bryan Cogman called people in and said a few words and my son was there with me.

"That was quite something. And I got my mockingbird pin.

Aidan Gillen as John Boy in Love/Hate (Image: ITV)

"I had already let them know I wanted it, and I cleverly worked it so I got two.

"There’s one from my cloak and one from my tunic. So I got the large and the small size — one for me and one for my son."

Aidan is sad that he won't be back for the show's finale next year but revealed that he's content to happy to have gone with with a bang.

He said: "You know, I did pretty well. The character did pretty well. They need to hone the cast down.